The feel-good atmosphere of Chapecoense's match against Urawa Reds on Tuesday turned sour no thanks to a controversially awarded penalty as the visitors from Brazil went down 1-0 in the Suruga Bank Championship.

The annual midsummer one-off pitting the Copa Sudamericana champions and the J-League cup holders looked headed for a shootout but two minutes to time, referee Kim Jong Hyeok awarded Urawa a penalty.

Kim decided Zlatan Ljubijankic was brought down by Chapecoense captain Grolli, pointing to the spot. Reds skipper Yuki Abe converted for the lone goal on a wet, drizzly evening at Saitama Stadium.

Chapecoense protested with a fire and fury that resulted in six minutes of injury time, and clapped Kim and the officiating crew off the pitch. Grolli said he definitely did not foul Ljubijankic.

"No way it was a penalty. Even the Urawa players said it," Grolli said. "I still want to congratulate Urawa, though, because they are a quality side and were good enough to win even without the penalty."

Ljubijankic agreed with Grolli.

"I was not asking for a penalty at that moment," he said. "I haven't seen the video yet, but from my opinion it was not a penalty. It's football, sometimes referees make mistakes but if the referee would ask me, I would say no, it's not a penalty."

More than eight months after a plane crash killed all but three of their players and 25 team officials, Chapecoense arrived in Japan for the 10th edition of the Suruga Bank Championship.

In November, 71 of the 77 passengers aboard a flight for the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana were killed as the plane crashed into the mountains near Medellin, Colombia.

Five of the victims had J-League experience, including the manager, Caio Junior, who coached Vissel Kobe in 2009.

Chapecoense's current squad feature two former J-League players: Moises Ribeiro (Avispa Fukuoka, 2015) and Apodi (Tokyo Verdy, 2011).

While Urawa were the hosts of Tuesday's game, Chapecoense were the clear sentimental favorites with all they have had to endure, just as they were for last week's tribute match against Barcelona at the Camp Nou.

Reds owned the first half against a Chapecoense side who only touched down Saturday, but the hosts had nothing to show for their early dominance. Vinicius Eutropio's men, though, recovered after halftime, limiting Urawa to a single shot while pumping out 10 of their own.

The game seemed bound for penalties for just the fourth time in competition history, but Kim, evidently, felt the need to end it during regulation.

More than 10 million yen was raised for the tragedy-hit club from donations collected through Japan's football community. On top of that, Reds supporters held up Chapecoense banners in an embracing gesture after the final whistle.

But despite the brotherly love, Eutropio lamented the way the late damper thrown on the proceedings.

"They were given a penalty two minutes before the game finished. It's tough for the players to control their emotions in a situation like that because they all know the outcome with so little time left on the clock," the manager said.

"We are of Latin blood so it can be difficult to keep our composure sometimes."